First let’s start by saying, “We love us some Ted Yoho.” And Ted Yoho loves limited government, free markets and federalism. Not only that, but the good congressman from the armpit of Florida (CD3) is one of the stars of The Swamp. So it pains us to rib him about his very bad signs. Yoho violates just about every rule of campaign sign design we cover in Good Sign Bad Sign 101.
Now if you are wondering why we chose to highlight the bad sign of a friend when there are literally thousands of bad signs we could showcase here (many of which have been sent to us by our readers, thank you) it’s because of one brilliant aspect of his design worth sharing … It’s a One-Poler.
GSBS are big fans of the 2×8 rectangle and 4×4 square because of their cost and efficiency compared to the 4×8. But neither are as easy to install as Yoho’s Diamond One-Poler.
Nothing on your campaign is as intoxicating as the smell of your first shipment of big signs. We love the smell of coroplast in the morning because it smells like victory! But that buzz wears off in a hurry when you realize you have to put them up. That’s right, if you are running for state or local office, you will likely be the one to install them. Even great signs are no good to your campaign if left in storage or tacked on the wall in your campaign office.
Because they require only one post instead of two, the Diamond One-Poler is instantly twice as fast to install and saves 50% or more on lumber. Just make sure to have the flutes running horizontally to keep the sign from folding around the post in a heavy wind and you can likely avoid a crossbar.
In this episode of The Swamp, Yoho is interviewed while holding a yard sign and waving at traffic. We will take issue with his form in a future post we’ll call Sign Waving 101. For now, just notice that a three term congressman from a relatively safe district is standing on a corner waving at traffic. If he can do it, why can’t you?
GOOD SIGN BAD SIGN 